Star Crossed Betrayal
by Shinji Shazaki
Summary: Slash warning.  Another chapter ended, but it's far from the end of the book.  Read, review, and I hope you enjoyed.
1. Ill Met By Thunder

Star-Crossed Betrayal

C1: Ill Met By Thunder

[Disclaimer: DC COMICS owns "Teen Titans."  I own whatever I write/create.  Don't steal and don't sue.]

Heavy footsteps drew her attention.  She lifted her hand, readying a blast of energy that would surely kill whoever was approaching her.  When the footsteps reached a certain point, she aimed and let the energy discharge.  The shot hit nothing, but illuminated a man wearing a dual-colored mask.  Lights suddenly flashed in the darkness and lit the warehouse.

"I know who you are," the man murmured in a dangerous voice.  "I know what you want.  And I can help you."  Blackfire grinned.

----------

While it was a daunting task, climbing the famed Mount Everest was a possible feat.  However, there had been few expeditions in quite some time, and for good reason.  The storms, which had always been deadly, were now sheer death made solid.  Whosoever tried to climb the mountain was found dead a few days later at the base of the summit.  Amazingly sharp pieces of ice had been embedded in the adventurers' bodies, not to mention the ice burns and looks of absolute terror frozen on the dead faces.

Despite all this, Blackfire followed Slade's advice.  She flew to the famous mountain and up above its peak.  There was an eye to this storm of ruin, and the vengeful woman dove into it.  The sight she found was something few people have seen and lived to talk about.

Hovering above the very top of Mount Everest was a creature of legend and horror: a demon.  It wasn't just a random, lowly demon either.  This demon that hovered, meditating, at Everest, was none other than Chaos Morningstar, heir to Hell itself.  Chaos sat in the air, legs crossed, with her hands on her knees and her eyes closed.

Blackfire swallowed her fear and started to float towards Chaos.  Even she, a woman rarely taken by fright, could not deny that Chaos was utterly terrifying in her true form.  Black feathered wings curved slightly around her, and a tail hung curled in her rumination.  Her clawed feet and hands were loose, and the scars all over her body finished the aura of Hell's future ruler.  Her one-sided blade hung in the air before her, as if she were staring at it with her eyes closed.

When Blackfire drew close, Chaos' six pure red eyes snapped open.  The alien froze briefly, but kept moving forwards with her confident smile.

"So you're the famous Chaos Morningstar," Blackfire said almost nonchalantly.  "Death herself.  I thought you were supposed to be scary."  Her lies did not seem to faze those eerie, unblinking red eyes.  Chaos continued to gaze straight ahead at her sword.  Blackfire dared to meet those eyes and smirked at the demon.

"Word is you have a score to settle with someone I want to get rid of," Blackfire sighed conversationally.  "If it's not much, you could just bump them off."  Chaos said nothing, as if waiting for Blackfire to continue.  "I want revenge against my sister.  Think you could handle killing a girl?"  Chaos closed her eyes and continued to meditate, completely ignoring Blackfire.  The dark-haired alien snarled and threw a sphere of energy at the demon.  The energy was dispersed against a brief wall of black flames and the alien lurched back.

"I have killed millions," Chaos murmured abruptly.  "I have killed women, children, and anything else you can name.  What makes this girl so special that I should kill her for you and not for my own pleasure?"

"She's a friend of a person you want dead," Blackfire protested.  "Kill my sister Starfire and the world will have one less faulty hero."  A shard of ice flew by Blackfire's arm and tore a sizably deep gash in the alien's flesh.

"I will have nothing to do in this," Chaos muttered.  "I owe a favor to Raven, and that in turn becomes a favor to Starfire.  I will do nothing that would harm either of them."  Blackfire sneered at her, but then realized the meaning of what she had said.

"Are you saying that Starfire is involved with Raven?" Blackfire questioned in a hiss.

"They are in love," Chaos stated simply.  "Now leave before I kill you."

----------

The night in Black City was surprisingly slow on crime and wrongdoing.  Thusly, the Teen Titans were resting and watching an action oriented, comedic science fiction movie.  Robin, Cyborg, and Beast Boy laughed uproariously at a random joke, and Raven continued to read her anthology of poetry.  Starfire took a breath, her giggles finally ceasing after a time, and looked to Raven.

A smile tugged at Starfire's lips and she carefully shifted as close as she could to Raven.  She even dared rest her head on Raven's and smiled in delight.  Her arms laced around the sorceress, and Raven only smirked a bit in response.  Raven's dark eyes suddenly gleamed and her voice rang in Starfire's mind.

"_Listen for a moment,_" Raven's voice said.  "_'Be calm…and love me…today and yesterday…what tearful longings I have for you.  You, you my life, my all…farewell.  Continue to love me and never misjudge the most faithful heart of your beloved.  Ever thine, ever mine, ever ours.'  Always think of this from me._"  Starfire blushed brilliantly and hugged Raven just a bit tighter.

Robin looked directly at the screen, keeping his eyes from the other side of the couch.  He knew that it was his own jealousy that was making him so terribly angry at his teammates.  He knew that he should try to keep his jealousy under control, but it was tremendously difficult.  Robin still cared about Starfire.  It was plainly obvious, even to Starfire herself.

At times, he wished there was a way all three of them could be happy in their own right.  At times, he wished that he was the one that Starfire cared for.  At times, he wished that none of what happened had happened.  Robin hated what had happened, but knew he had to accept it.

----------

Blackfire scowled as she walked through the hallway.  Slade's advice to see Chaos had proved nothing but a time-wasting folly.  She returned to demand why he had said such a useless thing, but he found her first.

"Consider it a test," he had said.  "I wanted to see your reaction to facing a creature known for death.  Go to the deepest, darkest part of this city and find the one that has a price.  She's well known, even by the Titans.  She is an assassin, a thief, and a demon.  Give her this, and she'll gladly help you in your efforts."  He handed her a small card with words and numbers that meant nothing to Blackfire, but she went to find this person with a price.

After asking some riffraff and threatening them with deadly blasts of energy, she had been directed to an apartment building that was entirely empty save for one person.  Scores of bottles lay scattered in the halls and rooms and stains covered the walls.  Knives and bullet holes added to disturbing visage.  Blackfire, however, found none of this too frightening.  After meeting with Chaos, not much seemed very intimidating.

Pounding music grew louder as Blackfire hovered up a few more flights of stairs.  She followed her hearing and came to a door that lay open, lights spilling from within.  The music suddenly halted and Blackfire found a blade against her throat.

"Name yourself and your purpose," a voice said.  Blackfire let her eyes slide along the blade to see a tall young woman standing with her eyes closed.  Her ears were pointed, and a tail twitched around her waist.  When her eyes opened, Blackfire stared at the trademark blood-red eyes of a demon.

"An assassination," Blackfire murmured, carefully keeping her throat from the blade.  "My name is Blackfire.  Here."  She handed the card to the demon woman.  After a moment, the demon lowered her sword and turned about.

"A new credit from this Slade fellow," the demon chuckled.  "Very well.  He's always got a fine offer.  Give me your terms, Blackfire."

"Tell me your name first," Blackfire demanded.

"Kali," the demon replied as she sat down at a table.  "I am a death dealer and a thief of the highest caliber.  Now give me the terms of this assassination."

"I want my sister dead," Blackfire replied.  "Her name is Starfire.  Kill her, and anyone that gets in your way."  Kali smirked and grabbed a bottle of liquor from the table, ripping the cork from the container with her fangs and spitting it away.

"Simple terms," she said, smirking.  "Starfire of the Teen Titans, yes?  I have baffled them before with a few thefts and murders.  Who've you asked before you came to me?"

"Some demon named Chaos Morningstar," Blackfire sighed her answer and shrugged.  Kali paused, the bottle of liquor almost at her lips.  She grinned a fanged grin.

"Chaos wouldn't take this job?" Kali asked.  "How odd, though I understand.  She kills for her own pleasure, not for money.  I wonder why?"  Blackfire scowled.

"She said she owes a favor to Raven," she grumbled.  "Since Raven and Starfire are 'in love' as she put it, she won't kill Starfire."  Kali chuckled.

"Something tells me," she started.  "Well, never mind.  I'll start my work tomorrow, but I've got my own terms.  You stay out of my way, or I'll have to kill you on your terms.  One last thing, before you go to leave me to my work.  You can neither back down on this, nor can you say that I'm working too slowly for you.  The job will be done."

As she began to drink, Kali closed her eyes and pointedly ignored Blackfire.  Blackfire took the hint and left the demon.  Kali lowered the bottle a few minutes after Blackfire left, the container completely drained of its contents.  She looked up at the flickering florescent lights and smiled slightly.

"Chaos," she murmured, her demon blood easily rinsing the toxins from the alcohol and leaving her only with the taste she appreciated so very much.  "It's been at least a century since I last saw you.  How much have you changed, I wonder?  Are you still that wicked heir to Hell I fell for?  Are you still my madness?"  Kali chuckled and threw the bottle against the wall, smiling up to the sky she couldn't see.

----------

Raven smiled at Starfire, who was yet again curled up with her head in Raven's lap.  The red-haired girl had fallen asleep some time after the movie had ended and the boys had retreated to their rooms.  She had remained with Raven, enraptured as the sorceress read her a few choice poems from her anthology.  In the darkness of the room, Raven's eye caught one poem in the moonlight.  Even though Starfire was sleeping, she began to read in a soft voice.

"Because of you, in gardens of blossoming flowers I ache from the perfumes of spring.

I have forgotten your face, I no longer remember your hands; how did your lips feel on mine?

Because of you, I love the white statues drowsing in the parks, the white statues that have neither voice nor sight.

I have forgotten your voice, your happy voice; I have forgotten your eyes.

Like a flower to its perfume, I am bound to my vague memory of you. I live with pain that is like a wound; if you touch me, you will do me irreparable harm.

Your caresses enfold me, like climbing vines on melancholy walls.

I have forgotten your love, yet I seem to glimpse you in every window.

Because of you, the heady perfumes of summer pain me; because of you, I again seek out the signs that precipitate desires: shooting stars, falling objects."

Raven lay a gentle kiss on Starfire's lips, smiling at the soft sigh Starfire let out in return.  The sorceress realized that her life, her all, truly was in this innocence that was Starfire.  She was, for the first time in her life, utterly happy.

"I love you, Starfire," she whispered in the silence of the room.  "I love you."

_—to be continued—_


	2. Warning Dreams

Star-Crossed Betrayal

C2: Warning Dreams

[Disclaimer: DC COMICS owns "Teen Titans."  I own whatever I write/create.  Don't steal and don't sue.]

 "What, pray tell, haunts your dreams, young champion?  What are your fears?  What crafts your nightmares?"

Starfire jerked at the voice and opened her eyes.  A soft red light covered the empty building and leaked in through the shattered windows.  She looked about, sickened by the sight of the stains on the walls.  Starfire began to walk towards one end of the hall, wondering why exactly she was in this place.

"Come now, hero.  Tell me what frightens you.  A demon needs to know these things."

"Who are you?" Starfire demanded of the voice.  "Where are you and why am I here?"  The voice chuckled slightly and Starfire shivered, suddenly reminded of the demon Chaos.  She gathered her energy in preparation for an attack and looked behind herself in caution.  When she turned back about, she came face to face with blood-red eyes.  Out of terror, Starfire threw her star bolts at the person standing before her, but to no avail.

The person fell straight through the floor, their body sliding cleanly through the dusty concrete.  Starfire threw a few more blasts at where the person had vanished, but the floor neither revealed her quarry nor acquired any damage in the scuffle.  The alien began to tremble now, her fear causing her hands to shake terribly.  Hands suddenly slid through her hair, gently holding her chin and pulling her back against someone.

"Now, now," the same voice as before murmured in her ear.  "No need for violence.  No violence from you, at any rate.  Now why don't you just tell me what frightens you."  Starfire shook her head and tried to jab backwards with her elbow.  Unfortunately for her, her captor suddenly vanished into the floor again, Starfire's strike missing completely.

"The only reason I'd like to know is because I'm certain your sister Blackfire knows," the voice said.  A person, a demon woman, stepped out of a wall a few feet ahead of Starfire and smiled at her.

"Why do you speak of my sister?" Starfire questioned, her fear that much lessened by seeing the demon wasn't Chaos.  "Who are you?"

"The name's Kali," the demon replied, bowing rather sarcastically.  "Consider this a warning.  Your sister is free and here on Earth.  She's hired me to kill you and anyone else that gets in my way."  Starfire's eyes widened and she shook her head in objection.

"No," she murmured.  "I know that my sister said she would have her revenge, but she would not try to…_kill_ me.  My sister is not that kind of person."  Abruptly, Kali was standing in front of her, holding her chin in her hand.

"You poor, naïve little thing," Kali snickered.  "Your sister is as blood-thirsty as my Chaos is.  Revenge flows deep enough to make those seeking it willing to bathe in blood.  If the only way to show that I'm not lying to you is to give you just a taste of the pain you're in store for, then I guess I will."  The demon lifted her broadsword and slashed Starfire's bare abdomen.  Starfire screamed in the sudden pain and automatically fired a sphere of energy.

Kali dodged with the agility demons were gifted with and swung her sword again.  The second gash tore a long line up Starfire's left arm and she cried out once more.  Again Kali slashed the girl's flesh, ripping a streak on Starfire's thigh.  The alien fell to the ground in her agony, staring up at her assailant in terror.  Her heart throbbed within her chest, her breath coming swiftly in her fright.  Kali knelt down and laid the sword's edge against Starfire's throat.

The sword cut a small wound with the slightest pressure and Starfire whimpered.  Tears streaked her face as she prayed for something to rescue her from this awful torture.  The red light was swiftly replaced with purest white and Kali glanced up from her sadistic torment.

"Leave her _be_!" Raven ordered as she sent her magic to capture the demon.  Kali grinned and fell through the floor, utterly vanishing.  Raven ran to where Starfire lay sobbing in pain and horror.  She knelt down and gathered Starfire to her.

"Wake up, Starfire!" the sorceress pleaded.  "Wake up!  This is a dream!  Wake up!"

----------

Starfire's eyes snapped open as she gasped.  She sat up only to cry out in pain.  As she looked at herself, she found that the wounds inflicted in the dream were real, and pulsing red blood.  As her eyes traced the painful wounds, she began to sob, her screams carrying through the tower.

"Starfire!" Raven's voice reached her ears as hands gently closed on her shoulders.  "Starfire, it's all right!  Calm down!  I'm right here!"  Starfire flung her arms around Raven and she sobbed into the other girl's shoulder.  A door burst open and Cyborg, Robin, and Beast Boy rushed into the room.

"What's going on?" Robin asked as he vaulted over the couch.  He drew back at the sight of blood.  Beast Boy paled under his fur and Cyborg looked quite ill.

"It was a demon!" Starfire cried.  "A demon attacked me!"  A cold quiet consumed everything, only broken sporadically by Starfire's sobs.  Robin turned to gaze at Raven, who ignored him and concentrated on healing Starfire's wounds.

"Chaos can attack us in our _dreams_?" Beast Boy shrieked in horror.  "She's a real-life 'Freddy Krueger'!  We're all dead!"

"It was not Chaos," Starfire murmured, her breath a bit more even with Raven's healing.  "It was a demon named Kali.  She said that…my sister hired her to…to…I do not believe it!  My sister would not wish that of me!  My sister is not a murderer!"  Another uneasy silence fell on the room.  After a moment, Raven brushed the tears from Starfire's face.

"It'll be all right," the sorceress said gently.  "You should go to bed and rest for now.  We can figure out something tomorrow.  Come on."  She stood and pulled Starfire to her feet, leading the taller girl away.  Robin did not watch them go.

----------

Raven paused at the door when Starfire sat on the edge of her circular bed and stared at the floor.  Unsure of what to do, she took a tentative step forwards Starfire.

"Raven?" Starfire asked.  In response, Raven crossed the distance between them and sat down next to Starfire.

"Do you believe my sister would do such a thing?" the red-haired girl questioned, her voice sad and scared at the same time.  "Does my sister truly want me…dead?"  Raven gently put a hand over Starfire's and looked into Starfire's tearful eyes.

"I don't know," Raven answered.  "I don't know what Blackfire is really capable of.  Maybe she's just angry with you about what happened before.  Anger is a powerful emotion."

"I do not believe that!" Starfire hissed, shaking her head in denial.  "The demon said the same thing!  Anger would not make my sister wish me dead…would it?"  Faced with those innocent, trusting eyes, Raven swallowed and looked away.

"I really can't say, Star," she replied.  "I honestly don't know."  She began to stand up, but Starfire took her hand.  Her entire body was trembling.

"Please do not leave," she whispered.  "I…I do not wish to go back to sleep."  Raven sat back down and gazed at Starfire.  She could see how much the taller girl was quaking.  She was utterly terrified.  After a time, Raven took both of Starfire's hands and pressed her lips against Starfire's palms.

"Tell me what I can do to help you get back to sleep," Raven urged gently.  "I'll do whatever I can."  Starfire looked to Raven, her face wet with tears.  She wrapped her arms around the sorceress and began to cry quietly against her shoulder.

"How can I fight my dreams?" Starfire questioned through her tears.  "How can I defeat something that attacks my mind?"  Raven shushed her with a soft, lingering kiss.

"I can take whatever dreams you have and make them mine," she explained.  "If Kali decides to try to hurt you again, I'll be able to help you before anything happens."

"Will you stay with me?" the red-haired girl asked.  "Please.  I am still frightened to close my eyes."  Raven nodded and began to stand once more.  However, Starfire pulled her back down into her arms and lay down.  Blushing slightly, Raven glanced up to the taller girl's face.  Starfire merely let her eyes close slowly, her arms tight around Raven.

There was no disputing anything.  Starfire managed to slip off into sleep and Raven followed soon after.  They were not plagued any further that night by haunted nightmares.

----------

Kali opened her red eyes.  She let her magic calm and sighed heavily.  As she took another stolen bottle of liquor in clawed hand, Kali looked up to ceiling.  It had been decades—no, centuries, since anyone had come so close to actually capturing her in her world.  If she remembered correctly, it had been three hundred years since her first and only injury in her world.

"Of course, only you were able to hurt me there, my Chaos," she murmured after swallowing.  "Only you were ever able to catch me and make my world my nightmare."  Kali idly began to trace an 'x' pattern along the front of her torso, her claw following the indented scar in her skin.  She threw the bottle against the wall, sending glass shards flying in every direction.

"And you left," Kali said.  "You left after that night.  I can only remember that you vanished when I woke up with this scar.  You gave me this never-ending scar, Chaos.  You hurt me, and yet…I still love you."  She sighed once again and stood up from the floor.  Her red eyes scanned the room she had rested in.  After a moment, Kali walked out of the room with her broadsword in hand.

"I need to kill something," she grumbled.

_—to be continued—_


	3. Breaking a Border

Star-Crossed Betrayal

C3: Breaking a Border

[Disclaimer: DC COMICS owns "Teen Titans."  I own whatever I write/create.  Don't steal and don't sue.]

"Last night, there were a record number of murders and one massive robbery.  The murders were all less than ten minutes apart per each killing, and this bank we're in was completely emptied, down to the last cent.  There aren't any videos, if you were wondering.  All the systems are down—we only just got the lights working, so there's no telling how long it'll be before we can get our security back up."

"But this has happened before, hasn't it?  This kind of robbery has happened before."  The police chief of Black City frowned, but nodded.  Robin scowled as well.

"It has," the woman grumbled.  "About six months ago, this bank was robbed down to the last cent.  The customers were lucky because they all have electronic accounts.  The bank only lost physical money.  The same thing happened this time, even though all the electronic systems are fried.  It'll take weeks to get everything back up."

"So what happened with the murders?" Robin questioned.  The police chief sighed and ran a hand through her graying brown hair.

"We assume," she began to explain again, "that the thief was also the murderer.  The speed of the murders and the way that the systems went down almost all at once says that this criminal has speed unlike any other.  It's all very strange."  Soft footsteps sounded behind the heroes and the police chief.  They turned and found a young woman with black hair standing behind them.

"This place is off limits to civilians!" the police chief snapped.  "Who let you in here?"

"One of your officers," the woman replied.  "I told him that I have information about what happened.  I know who stole the money and killed those twenty-seven people last night."  The police chief raised a brow, her gaze dubious.  She quickly drew her gun, aiming directly at the woman's head.

"Unless you're some kind of investigative reporter, my officers never would have let you in here," the police chief snarled.  "The numbers of deaths were not released to anybody outside the force—not even to the Titans here.  Who are you really?"  The woman grinned, flashing sharp fangs.  She lifted her head, revealing her blood-colored eyes.  Starfire froze, recognition suddenly flashing in her mind.  She realized that she knew that voice—that face.

"You!" Starfire shouted in rage.  "You are the demon!"  She threw a star bolt directly at the black-haired woman, only to see her dodge with surprising ease.

"Your men are quite dead," the black-haired woman chuckled.  "It was my pleasure to have their blood on my sword.  My name is Kali.  I am the one who killed those humans last night, and the one who robbed this bank blind.  I did all of this to draw out your beloved heroes and especially her."  She lifted a broadsword from behind her back and pointed it at Starfire.

"Titans GO!" Robin shouted.  He cast a freeze disk at the demon as Cyborg fired his sonic cannon.  The resulting explosion headed straight for Kali, but she grinned in response.    When the blast faded, she was nowhere to be found.  Out of experience, the Titans readied themselves for Kali to reappear.

"You're really quite a cute little kid," Kali said suddenly, rising up from the floor behind Starfire.  "I can see exactly why your girlfriend is so obsessively protective of you."  Her clawed hand closed around Starfire's throat, squeezing tight.

"Let…go…of me!" Starfire choked out.  She pulled at Kali's hand and threw a punch.  Kali dodged again and grabbed Starfire's wrist.  She smirked and fell through the floor, pulling Starfire with her.  Raven leapt forwards, her magic opening a hole in the ground.  The Titans followed underground, landing in one of many rivers created by the water structures.

There were four different paths from the central place they had landed in.  With a quick glance and a nod, the Titans split apart to hunt down their enemy and ally.  Robin reached the end of his path and looked about.  Abruptly, Kali appeared in front of him, standing upside down on the ceiling.

"Jealous much, bird boy?" she laughed at him, hopping back on the ceiling a few feet.  "I've seen your dreams.  You want Starfire."  Robin pulled his bo staff from his utility belt and leapt towards his enemy.

"Where is she?" he demanded.  Kali ducked, lying flat against the ceiling and laughing madly.

"Admit it, why don't you?" she inquired.  "Worried of a little rejection?"

"Starfire's made her decision!" he shouted in reply.  He threw a freeze disk at her, but the ceiling was the only thing that received a covering of ice.  Kali had vanished into the ceiling once again.  She rose up from the ground and rushed at Robin with her sword raised.  Robin managed to block her strike with his staff, but soon realized that even Cyborg would have a problem facing off against the demon.

"You must know that Starfire's going to die," Kali chuckled, her sword beginning to cut through the metal staff.  "Either in her waking hours or in her sleep, Starfire is going to die at my hand!"  Robin felt a sudden, sharp pain in his shoulder as Kali's sword slashed through his staff and his skin.  She grinned even as he extended the other side of his staff and lifted it with his uninjured arm.

"I don't care if Starfire loves Raven!" he snarled.  "I'm not going to let you hurt her!"  He swung heavily with the staff, but Kali swung her sword and struck his temple with the pommel.  Robin flew into a wall and slid into the water, unconscious.  She smirked and flipped her sword to rest it on her shoulder.

"You're an unfortunate boy," she said as she began to walk away.  "But I don't pity you.  If you get in my way again, I won't pause in burying my sword in your skull.  Remember that, boy."  She walked through a wall to where she had hidden Starfire.  When she arrived, Raven was standing there between Kali and Starfire.

"Oho," Kali said as she raised a brow in question.  "Now how did you manage to get here and find your dear Starfire?"  She blinked at how Raven's eyes were glowing white and smirked a bit.  "Oh, of course.  You must be some kind of magic-user.  But your eyes tell a little different story.  I can feel that demon blood of yours pulsing in your veins."

"What did you do to her?" Raven snarled.  "If you hurt her at all, then I'll have your head."  Kali laughed in response, her eyes closing.  In her unconsciousness, Starfire whimpered in pain.  Raven turned, her eyes widening in shock as a long, deep gash began to appear on Starfire's body.  The wound started on her left shoulder and traveled down the girl's body in a diagonal line.

"Stop it!" Raven shouted.  "I told you to stop hurting her!"  She summoned her sword and swung at Kali while her eyes were closed.  Kali's red eyes opened and she blocked with her own blade.  She frowned at the way Raven moved, what her style was.  Kali pushed Raven back and her eyes widened at Raven's stance.

"That style," the pureblood demon growled.  "I know that style.  It's a variant on Chaos Morningstar's sword technique!  How do you know Chaos?"  Raven paused at the name of her teacher.

"She was my teacher," she explained.  "How do you know her?"  Kali snarled, her fangs flashing and her eyes gleaming in utter rage.

"Chaos was my lover!" she barked.  "How dare you ask me if I know her?"  She rushed at Raven, swinging her sword with amazing speed and strength.  Raven managed to block and threw a burst of dark energy at her enemy.  With the same speed, Kali tore through the energy with her claws.

"So Chaos taught you too," Raven murmured.  "It's her first rule for battle.  Never have—"

"Never have only one weapon," Kali finished her sentence.  "Chaos taught me everything she knows.  I was with her for seventy-six years!  You're nothing but a half-breed!  Chaos would never have taught you anything!"

"I killed her two and a half months ago," Raven murmured.  Kali froze, her eyes wide in shock.  "She said that I freed her from the destiny that bound her to protecting and teaching me."

"She's dead?" Kali whispered.  "You killed her?  How could you?"

"Lucifer resurrected her," Raven replied.  "She said she owes me a favor now.  So if you're involved with her, then I'm not sure I want to hurt you.  But if you keep threatening Starfire, then I'll kill you even if you are Chaos' lover!"

"To hell with killing her!" Kali yelled.  "I'll leave that to her worthless wretch of a sister!  My target has changed!  Your blood will be the next to stain my sword!  I'll be waiting for you on the mountain outside this city!  If you don't come to fight me in ten days, then I swear I'll slaughter everything in the city down to the last child!"

She leapt backwards through the wall and vanished.  Raven waited for a time, and then turned to Starfire.  The alien was bleeding heavily and she was obviously in danger.

"Starfire!" Raven shouted in shock at the wound.  "No!"  She lifted Starfire into her arms and let her holy magic heal the red-haired girl.  Though the wound had healed without scarring at all, the damage was done.  She had lost quite a lot of blood.  She needed time to heal.  Raven blinked away her tears, rubbing the heel of her palms against her eyes.

----------

"Dude, wake up!  Robin, wake up, man!"  Robin's eyes slowly opened to see Cyborg and Beast Boy.  The two smiled in victory at Robin's wakening, giving each other high-fives.

"What happened?" the black-haired boy questioned, rubbing his head in pain.  "All I can remember is Kali hitting me in the head.  Where's Starfire?"

"She's right here," Raven's voice said.  The three boys looked up to see their remaining comrades moving through a shadow on the wall.  Raven was carrying an unconscious Starfire on her back.  Cyborg, Robin, and Beast Boy ran to the two girls, terrified at the prospect of Starfire being hurt again.

"Before you ask, yes, she got hurt," Raven sighed, beginning to walk to where a ladder led to a manhole.  "She just needs some rest right now.  All her wounds are healed."

"Rest?" Beast Boy asked incredulously.  "Rest?  Are you nuts?  The freaky 'Freddy' demon's going to kill her if she sleeps!"

"No she won't," Raven replied, moving the heavy iron manhole cover with her magic.  "Kali's not after Starfire anymore.  She said that her target is me."  The boys paused for a moment even as Raven began to float up towards the light.

"So Star's going to be safe from now on?" Cyborg asked as the team emerged on the empty street.  "If Kali's not going after her anymore, that means she's safe, right?  And you can handle someone like Kali, right?"  Raven sighed heavily.

"Starfire's safe from Kali," she explained.  "It doesn't mean she's safe from Blackfire.  And I'm not sure if I can fight Kali."

"Why not?" Robin inquired curiously.  Raven turned back to look at him with a faint, sad smile.

"Because I've done a lot to hurt Chaos in the past," she murmured.  "If I hurt Kali, I might hurt Chaos even more.  Listen, I'm going to take Starfire back to the Tower.  I should get her back to her bed soon."  She nodded in farewell and rose up into the air, heading towards Titan's Tower.  Robin watched them go with a smile of his own.  He finally realized that he did care enough about Starfire to let her go.

----------

The deadly storms that had consumed Mount Everest had finally stopped.

_—to be continued—_


	4. Reflection in an Echo

Star-Crossed Betrayal

C4: Reflection in an Echo

[Disclaimer: DC COMICS owns "Teen Titans."  I own whatever I write/create.  Don't steal and don't sue.]

Chaos walked along the barely visible path with a faint smile.  Ever since leaving the peak of Everest, she had reverted to her more human-like form and began wearing her sword on her belt.  She had easily ignored the stares and whispers, and quickly killed anyone who questioned it.  Her smile was partly caused by the deaths, but mostly brought about by her journey.

It had been at least eight years since she had been in Azarath—far longer if one did not include the time spent training Raven.  Chaos drew a deep breath, savoring the scent the wind pulled from the trees around her.  It had always been a lovely place where she was walking.  It had been that way for at least five thousand years, if she remembered correctly.  The trees suddenly gave way to a clearing occupied by a house surrounded by stonewalls.  Chaos smiled—truly smiled—at the sight.

She walked through the open gate, passing through an invisible barrier and entering into an open area.  A few single-story edifices lay within the light brown stonewalls, and one building in particular caught her eye.  A man with black-feathered wings stood from the low terrace that encompassed the buildings and walked towards her.

"Welcome home, daughter," Lucifer Morningstar greeted her with a smile.

"It's good to be home, father," Chaos said in turn.

----------

"I believe you started a trend in humans, daughter," Lucifer murmured.  "I've seen so very many humans drinking herbal tea that I always have to laugh when I see them."  Chaos chuckled in return, sipping at her herbal tea.

"You influenced those girls as well," he sighed.  "Both Raven and Kali."  He paused as a thought struck him.  "You've never spoken much about Kali.  Tell me about her."  Chaos smiled, continuing to sip at her tea.

"Very well," she said.  "I met her a long time ago.  It was about the time…I believe it was just about the time that the Edo period in Japan had started.  We met there, in Japan."

----------

Chaos chuckled madly at the bodies that lay strewn on the floor and the blood on her sword.  She truly enjoyed this age where swords ruled the outcome of the world.  Japan was an excellent country to continue her current rampage.  The western countries had begun their industrialization, and swords were giving way to gun and cannons.  Despite all this, Chaos refused to give up her sword.  She preferred the thrill that a duel with a sword gave and the way that blood gleamed on the blade.  It was a perfect time for the demon.

She slid her sword into the sheath on her back, but kept her hand on the hilt for a moment.  A soft rustle had caught her ear.  The wind was very still that night and the bodies couldn't have moved.

"Whoever you are," Chaos said in perfect Japanese, "come out here so I can kill you.  You aren't going to live past tonight, and you can't kill me."  She turned about and was suddenly tackled, sharp claws sinking into her chest and throat.  Fangs followed the claws and slid into her shoulder.  After a moment, positive that Chaos was dead, the assailant stood up and wiped the black blood from their mouth.

"Guess you were wrong about me killing you," the person, a black-haired woman chuckled darkly.  "I killed you in one move."  She began to walk away, but froze in shock at the sound of Chaos moving.  Chaos stood up easily, a fanged grin showing on her face.

"Happy with your little achievement?" she asked.  "You gave me a couple scratches."  To prove her point, she gestured at the rapidly healing wounds.  The black-haired woman paled in shock and terror.  She turned on heel and began to run, but Chaos was far faster.  She pounced, quite literally, and slammed the other woman to the ground.

"Do you have any idea who you're attacking, little one?" Chaos chuckled, her eyes narrow with glee.  "I know exactly what you are.  I felt you hiding there in the shadows, little demon.  Perhaps I should call you by name, Kali.  Why is a demon like you attacking a demon like me?"  Kali froze under Chaos, her wrists trapped in Chaos' hands.  She suddenly realized who the woman pinning her was.

"You're Hell's heir," she whispered in awe.  "I—I wouldn't have attacked you if I realized that!  Forgive me!"  Chaos chuckled at her.  Her red eyes roamed shamelessly, taking in the figure in the dark crimson kimono.  She smiled briefly and pressed her lips against Kali's.  The other demon froze from head to toe, both aroused and confused by the kiss.

"I think I like you," Chaos purred after pulling away.  "I'll let you live because of that."  She stood up and offered her hand to Kali.  Kali eyed her nervously, but took Chaos' hand.  The taller demon pulled Kali to her feet with ease and brushed a blade of grass from her shoulder.  She smiled at her and turned about to leave.  Kali's hand twitched, and then shot out to grab Chaos'.  Chaos looked over her shoulder to see Kali staring at the ground.

"Wait," Kali murmured.  "I'm…frightened."

"Of what?" Chaos asked.  "I said I'm letting you live.  I don't see what you could be afraid of any longer."

"Please!" Kali hissed.  "The only reason I know that you're Hell's heir is because of something I felt inside me.  I don't even know what I am."  Chaos turned to face the shorter woman, a small smirk on her face.

"Of course you don't," Chaos chuckled.  "You were thrown out of the house that you were traded to when the humans saw that tail you hide under your kimono.  You're what that man Shakespeare would call a changeling.  You were given up in exchange for a human child—your blood parents most likely wanted a feast of human flesh.  I believe I killed them one night twenty years ago back in Europe.  How old are you?"

"I lost track at fifty," Kali whispered in return.  "How can I be so old and still look like I'm barely an adult?"  Chaos chuckled and pulled Kali close.

"Come with me and I'll explain exactly what you are," she laughed.  Kali nodded tentatively.  Chaos grinned and pulled her free hand back, closing it into a fist.  Before Kali could even pull in a breath of shock, Chaos' fist connected with her forehead.  She fell into the darkness.

----------

"Where did you take her?" Lucifer questioned.  Chaos smirked and snapped her clawed fingers.  Instantly, the handle-less mug was refilled with herbal tea.  She took a sip and smirked again.

"I took her where I live outside Azarath," she replied.  "I took her to the very top of Mount Everest.  I can easily control the weather up there, and it's absolutely silent.  I've been there for the past few months meditating."

"Your death gave you much to think about," Lucifer murmured.  "I understand.  My own death gave me quite a bit to ponder."

"Your death," Chaos scoffed.  "You mean your suicide.  You were always Heaven's most favored angel.  That's why you let yourself fall.  You knew that Heaven needed its opposite, so you made yourself the ruler of Hell.  But in your rush to aid Heaven, you suffered the madness that I've suffered as well."

"Of course," Lucifer sighed.  "That madness is what separates you and I from the angels and from the rest of the demons.  I have gone mad many times over in my long, long life.  And you have done the same.  So what happened with your woman?"  Chaos laughed aloud at her father's question.

"Things went amazingly well with her for years," she answered.  "I taught her many things.  I even made her a sword of her own.  She was so glorious in battle.  I've never had a better time in my life than when I was with Kali."  Lucifer caught the sad tone in his daughter's voice.

"And you still left her," he said softly.  "I remember that night when you left her.  What happened that night?"  Chaos frowned, putting her mug down beside her.

"It was probably never supposed to happen," she began.  "My dreams were starting to become enslaved in a madness.  Kali must have watched me sleep, or she never would have done what she did.  She's able to…how do I put this?  She can move through anything in the real world, but her greatest power is being able to move into any dream that she wants.  Unfortunately, when she enters a dream, anything that happens in the dream becomes real."

----------

Kali frowned at Chaos' shaking hands.  She knew that Chaos was suffering in her dreams, but her lover had expressly forbid her from entering her dreams.  Chaos had promised that nothing was wrong and Kali had nothing to worry about.  However, Chaos' almost inaudible whimpers sent a sharp pain through her chest.  It seemed so very wrong to hear Chaos make a sound like that.

"I know you told me not to interfere with your dreams," Kali whispered softly into Chaos' pointed ear.  "But I just can't let your mind be tortured like this.  I care about you too much."  She closed her eyes and willed herself into Chaos' dream.

"Chaos!" she called into the red-toned dimness.  "Chaos, where are you?  Please, answer me!  You need to wake up and stop this dream!"  A loud scream, terrified and male, sounded in the strange dream world.  A bright burst of red brought light to the place and revealed Chaos standing not but a few yards away.  Now that she had seen Chaos, her eyes adjusted and tracked the demon easily.

"Chaos, come on," Kali said with a relieved smile.  "You need to wake up."  Chaos seemed far more dangerous than Kali had ever seen her before.  The blood splattered on her body and the sneer that bared her fangs frightened Kali terribly.  Abruptly, she realized why Chaos had warned her not to enter her dreams.

Before she could let her magic fade away to return her to the waking world, Chaos was upon her.  The madness that had consumed Chaos' dreaming world let out an awful laugh before striking with her sword.

Chaos woke to Kali screaming.  She jerked into a sitting position and looked to Kali.  The heir to Hell froze in shock at what she saw.  Kali was bleeding—her body had been cut through in an 'x' shape.  Kali's demon healing stopped at a certain point and was only good enough to heal her body back together.  Everything inside her, however, had been brutally slashed and bled profusely.

Her blood stained everything, and she had quickly fallen unconscious.  Chaos froze as her eyes picked up on something both subtle and dire.  Kali's blood had begun to slow in its rapid departure.  She was about to die.  Chaos was paralyzed.  She watched, unable to do anything, as Kali died quickly, but painfully.

Even though she had killed hundreds of thousands of people, Kali's corpse struck a painful chord deep inside Chaos.  Too late, she realized that Kali was not a mere passing fancy.  She loved Kali with all her black heart.  Gently, almost reverently, Chaos picked up Kali's blood-covered body.  Her red eyes set in determination; Chaos went to beg her father to return Kali's life.

----------

"You did beg me," Lucifer chuckled slightly.  "You actually fell to your knees out of despair and begged me to resurrect her.  I did bring her back to life, but then you returned her to where you had been living in Asia and vanished from her life.  Why exactly did you beg for her life if you didn't intend to stay with her?"  Chaos finished her tea once again, but did not refill it.  She looked at her father, eyes sad and serious.

"I begged you to bring her back because her death was honestly too painful to bear," she murmured.  "I was worried that my madness might get the better of me again one day, and I doubt that even Heaven could bring a person back a second time.  I left her because I love her and I needed to get a hold on my mind, like you have."

"I took me a few thousand years," Lucifer admitted.  "A few thousand years and a time where I meditated for years on end.  Have you managed to find your final madness?"  Chaos smiled and stood up, brushing herself off.  She slid her sheathed sword onto her belt and started to walk away.  She turned on heel and smiled brightly at her father.

"I have indeed," she chuckled.  "I have some things to attend to in the human world.  I believe Kali is acting very foolishly and I need to save her again.  Farewell for now, father."  Lucifer smiled in return.

"Farewell for now," he replied.

_—to be continued—_


	5. Whispers of the Inevitable

Star-Crossed Betrayal

C5: Whispers of the Inevitable

[Disclaimer: DC COMICS owns "Teen Titans."  I own whatever I write/create.  Don't steal and don't sue.]

"Word says you've stopped hunting Starfire.  Care to explain why you went back on our deal?"  Kali glared angrily at Blackfire before taking another long drink from the liquor bottle in her hand.  Blackfire snarled and fired a shot from her eyes.  The liquor bottle shattered in the demon's hands, sending pieces of glass into the air.  Before the shards could hit the ground, Kali slammed Blackfire into the wall.

"I never needed your damn deal," Kali snarled.  "Being an assassin and a thief means I can cut the deal whenever I want.  Raven's blood is mine now.  You can kill your sister if you're not frightened of her."  Blackfire choked, pulling at Kali's hand.  The demon only tightened her hand around Blackfire's neck.

"It was Slade's money," the alien gasped.  "He's not going to be happy that you're backing out."

"Do you think I care?" Kali demanded.  "Slade can kill himself for all I care!  My battle with Raven is in six days.  If you want Starfire dead, kill her then.  Now get out!"  She threw Blackfire out of an already broken window and slumped against a wall.  A few moments later, Kali grabbed another full liquor bottle and stared at the shimmering liquid.

Her thumb and forefinger grasped the cap of the bottle and almost began to twist it off.  However, Kali found herself unable to move the cap one centimeter.  She sighed in weariness for the first time in three hundred years.  It had been three hundred years since she had slept or stopped consuming liquor by the gallon.  With an angry, feral snarl, she hurled the bottle away.

The glass crashed into a bare light bulb and shattered it.  The bottle, merely singed by a few errant sparks, spiraled through the air and smashed into tiny fragments on the floor across the room.  Kali looked out the broken window and felt her eyes burn with her first tears of despair.  Black clouds covered the moon and cast the entirety of the city into darkness.  Out of anger, misery, and sheer exhaustion, Kali fell to the floor and sobbed.  She weakly pounded her fist against the floor, tears falling into the dust covering the ground.

Before long, the demon had fallen into an incredibly deep sleep.  Kali had curled into a ball, her arms wrapped around herself as if substituting for something.  Her form, frail in her slumber, shook with the emotions that had ravaged her being for the past few centuries.  Only in her tormented, fragmented dreams could she let herself feel those emotions.  If she let anything get to her, she would be unable to move from the pain in her terrible soul.  Kali slept for the first time in a very long time, weeping as her dreams confused and destroyed her even more.

----------

Starfire's eyelids twitched and slowly opened.  She stared up at the ceiling for a time, her vision eventually clearing.  Though she felt drained, Starfire realized that she was remarkably uninjured.  She had no idea if she had dreamt in her unconsciousness, and was suddenly terrified that Raven might have been hurt guarding her.

The girl sat up as quickly as she could and rushed to the main chamber of the tower.  Cyborg and Beast Boy were, as always, battling for electronic supremacy in one of their many racing games.  Robin was sitting on the back of the couch, laughing every so often as Cyborg or Beast Boy threw jibs at each other.  The sound of the door hissing shut drew Robin to turn about.  When he laid eyes upon Starfire, he smiled and laughed with a wave.

"Great to see you up again, Star," he said.  Cyborg paused the game so he and Beast Boy could see their teammate.  Beast Boy let out a cheer, leaping into the air and landing in Starfire's arms as an adorable kitten.  Starfire smiled at the green cat, scratching behind his ears.

"I am glad to be up again," she replied.  "But where is Raven?  Has something happened to her?"  Beast Boy bounced out of Starfire's arms and turned back to his usual form.

"No, she's fine," he said as he returned to the couch.  "She's just been up on the roof for the last nine days."

"Nine days?" Starfire asked.  "Have I been sleeping for so long?  But why is she there and not here with us?"

"She said she needs to think about something," Robin explained, walking to his friend and teammate.  "She said that Kali's target has changed.  Kali's after Raven now."  Starfire paled at Robin's words and turned about to hurry and find Raven.  Robin watched her go without any malice in his heart.

----------

Raven heard the door open and close.  She heard hurried footsteps and their sudden stop behind her.  She felt a rush of air as the person fell to their knees behind her.  She felt familiar arms wrap around her but didn't move.  Starfire was trembling with silent tears, the small drops falling onto Raven's neck.

"Why are you crying?" Raven questioned gently, lifting her hands to gently hold Starfire's.

"Why must you be the demon's target?" Starfire whispered, her voice strained in distress.  "I do not want you injured as I have been!  Please!"

"Starfire, I can't change Kali's mind," Raven murmured, turning about and pulling Starfire into a hug.  "I don't know why she wants to kill me, but I won't leave you.  Don't worry about tomorrow."  Starfire froze at her words.

"What happens tomorrow?" she asked.  The way Raven did not meet her eyes told Starfire everything.  Starfire's tears started anew and she clung to Raven, trembling with her sobs.  Raven stroked Starfire's hair, laying soft kisses on Starfire's forehead.

----------

Blackfire snarled as she landed at the top of the mountain.  Kali was sitting on a large stone, her eyes locked on Titan's Tower.  The silence between them was filled with tangible hatred.

"Raven and Starfire are almost here," Kali suddenly spoke up.  "If you value your life at all, stay out of my battle with Raven."  Blackfire let out a small scoff, crossing her arms and turning her attention to the darkening sky.  A soft wind blew by as Starfire and Raven landed before Kali and Blackfire.  The silence of dusk seemed at odds with the mêlée that was about to begin.

The sun finally sank below the verge of the sky and cast the world into the pale moonlight.  Kali lifted her sword and set it against the moon.  She stared at the glistening blade, the light reflecting into her blood-toned eyes.  Raven saw the sudden change in the light, how Kali's hand tensed.  Not one second later, Raven had been forced backwards off the summit the group stood upon.  Kali had leapt full-force at Raven, and the two were locked in a battle in a world only they could exist in.

"Raven!" Starfire cried out in worry.  She began to move towards the precipice but was abruptly cut off by her sister.  Blackfire hurled a blast of energy into Starfire's torso, sending the girl flying backwards.

"No you don't!" Blackfire shouted.  "You're fighting me, little sister, and no one is going to help you this time!"  Starfire pulled herself out of the rocks she had landed in, her eyes lighting with her anger.

"I do not need help fighting you!" she snarled.  Energy flashed from her eyes and caught Blackfire off-guard.  The older of the sisters was flung into the air and Starfire laid chase.

Raven barely dodged another slash, a thin line of red briefly appearing on her cheek before healing.  She found herself moving with the same speed that she had dueled Chaos with, even though her emotions were astonishingly calm.  She realized now how much power she had and why the archangel Gabriel had personally placed a limiter release to let her powers surge as she needed them.

As she dodged and blocked each strike, Raven became aware of how futile the battle was.  Kali was fighting with everything she had; every emotion and muscle was tuned to her effort to kill Raven.  Raven, however, was barely using any of her magic or her strength.  Both of them knew that Raven's skills were beyond anything Kali could ever attain, and still the pureblood demon kept fighting.

Kali coughed hard as Raven landed a heavy blow on her ribs.  Her clawed hand covered the area as her legs shook from the pain.  Though her breathing was ragged and hindered by sudden coughs of blood, Kali doubled her already labored exertion and rushed at Raven once more with a cry for blood.

Above them, Starfire had gained the upper hand on her sister.  Blackfire was on the defensive, scarcely dodging the bursts of crushing energy that Starfire let loose.  Truthfully, Blackfire was beginning to see that her battle was hopeless as well.  Starfire had become the better warrior.  With one more massive shot, Starfire sent Blackfire back through the air and into the mountaintop.

Breathing heavily, Starfire flew down to kneel by her unmoving sister.  She saw that Blackfire was still breathing and not terribly injured, and thus felt no guilt about defeating her sister so.  She turned about to find if Raven was unharmed and gasped.  Raven and Kali stood in identical stances, with their swords pulled back for a killing strike.  Before Starfire could react, the two rushed at each other.

A crash sounded as blade struck blade.  Starfire tentatively opened her eyes and found Raven standing straight, her sword fading from sight and a faint smile on her face.  She gasped, terrified that Raven had been injured and that Kali had vanished after her killing blow.

"You have a very strange sense of timing, Chaos," Raven chuckled, turning about and smiling.  Starfire cast her eyes about and found Chaos standing a few yards away from Raven.  Kali was unconscious in the demon woman's arms.  Rather overjoyed that Raven was unharmed, Starfire leapt from the cliff and flew to the sorceress.

Chaos looked back to the cliff, her ears catching a sound that Starfire and Raven were unaware of.  Blackfire had revived and crawled to the edge of the cliff.  She summoned the last shreds of her energy to fire a deadly shot at both Raven and Starfire.  Chaos grinned her terrible fanged grin and cast her own spell of death.

Starfire turned when she heard her sister's scream.  Black flames ironically consumed Blackfire and turned her into ash.  The young alien froze as the flames faded into the clear, crisp night, staring at where her sister had been.  She turned rather haltingly towards Chaos, who returned her gaze with a smirk.

"My debt is done," Chaos hummed.  "Thanks, Raven, for not beating Kali up too badly.  Goodbye, you two lovely heroes."  She turned and began to walk away.  Kali stirred in her arms and looked up at her sleepily.  A faint smile graced the demon woman's face as she snuggled against Chaos.

"My tainted knight in black armor," Kali sighed happily.  Chaos chuckled at the pet name.  She summoned her black-feathered wings and rose up into the air.  They vanished from the moon's eye.

_—to be concluded—_


	6. Friendships Mended

Star-Crossed Betrayal

Epilogue: Friendships Mended

[Disclaimer: DC COMICS owns "Teen Titans."  I own whatever I write/create.  Don't steal and don't sue.]

Starfire heaved a heavy sigh, closing her eyes and laying her forehead against her knees.  Soft footsteps sounded on the dirt and loose pebbles behind her.

"So…BB told me you and Raven are hooked up now," Terra murmured.  Starfire looked up to the blond girl standing beside her, unsure of what to make of the new Titan's small smile.

"It's cool," the earthmover said without haste, rocking back and forth on her feet.  "I think you and Raven are kind of cute together."

"Thank you, friend Terra," Starfire replied, her voice unusually melancholy.  Terra frowned and sat down next to her teammate.  She laid a tentative hand on Starfire's shoulder, patting the older girl comfortingly.

"He also told me about the whole demon thing that went on while I was training myself," Terra explained.  "How you actually saw Lucifer Morningstar and Gabriel and all that.  And what about Chaos?  Man, she's scary."

"She killed my sister Blackfire," Starfire muttered.  Terra nodded, her small frown returning.

"I know," she said.  "Beast Boy said that's why you've been out here and why Raven seems unhappy again.  She did that because Blackfire was about to attack you and Raven.  I guess I can't really understand the whole thing, but maybe Chaos was just doing what you couldn't."  Starfire turned to gaze confusedly at the blue-eyed girl beside her.

"Maybe Chaos just thought that Blackfire wouldn't give up," Terra said, trying to explain.  "That Blackfire really wanted something bad to happen to you, you know?  And maybe, in her weird way, she was just making sure that Blackfire wouldn't try to hurt you and Raven anymore."  She sighed and picked up a small stone, firing it across the water with a short burst of her powers.

"Sorry," she murmured.  "I guess that doesn't really make sense at all."  Starfire shook her head, picking up a stone and rolling it in her hand.

"I understand," she said softly.  "I just wish that my sister had not gone to such lengths to exact revenge.  I wish I knew why she had changed so much from when I left my planet."

"People change a lot," Terra remarked.  "Even when you kind of hope they'd stay just the way they are, they're like a different person every time you see them."  She stood up and brushed the dust from her pants.  "You should come back into the tower.  Everyone wants you to cheer up.  It's no fun around here when you're depressed, Starfire."  Starfire considered this and nodded, standing up with her smile beginning to return.

As the two returned to Titan's Tower, they were greeted cheerfully from the rest of the team.  Starfire seemed to take in their happiness, her smile increasing moment by moment.  When she saw Raven, she smiled her best smile and launched herself at the dark-haired sorceress.  Terra sidled up next to Robin with a sly smirk.

"You said you'd tell me if I got her back in here," she whispered through her teeth.  "So?"

"Beast Boy is ticklish on his left foot, his stomach, and behind his ears," Robin replied.  Terra squealed in glee at the information and leapt at the green-furred boy.  Soon, the Tower was filled with its usual laughter.

_—end—_


End file.
